Master of Manipulation
by EmeraldAndSilver
Summary: After the death of her mother, Moira is forced to move to the UK and transfer to Hogwarts. She is able to read and manipulate everyone and has her sights set on Draco. And understands Harry in a way no one else does. During HBP. Smut to come. Please R&R!
1. The Move

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything concerning Harry Potter, obviously. The characters and settings were created by JK Rowling. However, the character of Moira was created by me!**

**This is my first story ever, so please read and review (only constructive criticism please!)**

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Moira Lloyd was standing in her childhood home for what would be the last time. Everything she owned was packed in boxes and trunks which had been sent ahead of time to her father. Her father, for whom Moira was waiting. She had never even seen her father before, but would now be living with him. Her mother had just passed away and she was forced to leave her friends, her school, and her home in San Francisco to live with her absentee father just outside London.

"I hate this," she said aloud. "I'm sixteen. Why the hell can't I live alone for one year until I come of age? I only have two years left of school at the California Conservatory for Wizards and Witches. And now I have to go live with my dad. We've barely ever spoken!"

At that moment, there was a loud _pop_ and Moira soon saw her father.

There couldn't have been a more awkward moment. The two stood silently for a few moments, neither knowing what to say.

"Hello Moira." John Giddings broke the silence.

"Hello D-Dad." Merely calling this stranger "dad" seemed incredibly odd to Moira.

"Are you all ready to apparate with me to your new home?"

"Yes, yes I am."

John held out his arm and Moira linked hers around it. She felt the sudden notion of being pulled forward and knew that nothing would be the same again.

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The pair arrived inside the Giddings family home in Kingston Upon Thames, a borough of London. Though a muggle city, the Giddings were a noble, pure-blood wizard family. Moira herself was pure-blood and liked learning about her heritage. Some of her ancestors had made great advancements in the wizarding world, and this gave Moira a sense of importance.

The Giddings home was immaculate and over two hundred years old. John Giddings gave his daughter a tour of the house and ended in her new bedroom. Moira looked around the room. It was quite large with a queen-sized bed, dresser, wardrobe, and vanity. It was decorated in sliver and dark green, not very feminine, but not overly masculine either.

All of her things had already been put away. Moira suspected her father must have at least one house elf, but had not seen one on her tour.

"Do you like it?"

"Yes, very much. Thank-you. But my things didn't have to be put away. Aren't I leaving for school in less than a week?"

"Yes, but the house-elves where eager to set a good impression for you. They were happy to unpack your things and will be equally as happy to repack whatever you wish to take to Hogwarts. If you make a list of what you need, they will take care of everything."

"Thanks Dad." It still felt weird to call him that, but she was glad she wouldn't have to do it for very long before she left for school. Besides, the name would get her on his good side, which would definitely be a good thing. "When do I leave again?"

"The train for Hogwarts leaves from London on the first, in two days. I've taken the liberty to order your school supplies for the year and they are already packed in your blue trunk."

"Wow, you've thought of everything. Thanks. Do I have my class schedule yet?"

"Yes, it is on the vanity." Moira turned to find the letter. "You have the entire third floor to yourself. The bathroom is the next door to the right, then there is a guest bedroom for any friends that you may want to have over."

Moira really couldn't believe how nice and accommodating her father was. He seemed to have thought of everything she could want. But she wanted to explore her room alone, and knew just how to get her father to leave her.

"Thanks for everything Dad." She pretended to try and stifle a yawn.

"You're welcome. Well, I better leave you. You must be tired. Long distance apparitions can do that. I'll send for you when dinner is ready."

"Ok." She yawned again. "See you later."

Her father exited and Moira smiled. _That was a piece of cake. He is just as easy to manipulate as everyone else. _

"I so cannot wait to get out of here. It will only take me two weeks until I'm the queen of that school."

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**AN: **I realize this chapter was just expostion and background on a new character. But in the next chapter she leaves for Hogwarts and sits with the Golden Boy himself on the train ride.

Also, is Moira at all an interesting character so far?


	2. Hogwarts Express

**Disclaimer: I don't own the world of Harry Potter and I'm making no money from this story.**

**AN: This was written very quickly and I didn't have my copy of HBP, so I had to do some stuff from memory. It will probably be edited later if I'm informed there are major canon discrepancies. Again, this is my first fanfic, so please read and review!**

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Moira hated her outfit. She knew she needed to make a good first impression on her new school mates, but what did British wizards wear?

"My jeans look far too American. I need to change." She looked at her packed trunk. "There's no way I'm going to go through all that." She picked up her rosewood wand from the vanity and transfigured her jeans into black dress shorts and her socks into sheer black tights. "There. Now I look British." Moira admired herself in the vanity mirror. She was five foot six, and a slender 120 pounds. Her auburn hair was long and styled perfectly messy waves. She wore a green shirt that, along with her hair, brought out her brilliant blue eyes. Moira knew she was very attractive and the spitting image of her mother.

The thought of her mother began to sadden Moira, but she was able to shrug the tears away. There was no time for tears today.

There was a knock on the door.

"Yes?" Moira asked.

Nippy, a Giddings family house elf entered the room and bowed. "Sorry to disturb you Miss Moira, but Master Giddings asked me to inform you that it is time to leave for the train."

"Thank-you Nippy. You can tell Father I will be down in just a minute."

The elf left the room as Moira put on her jacket, making sure to put her wand in the inside pocket.

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Moira and her father arrived at King's Cross and hour before the Hogwarts Express was scheduled to leave. Moira was curious about the station and the trains in general, as she had never been on a train before. The pair came to the wall between platforms 9 and 10 and John Giddings walked through the wall without a word to his daughter. Moira was slightly taken back, but easily followed her father through the wall.

Platform 9 ¾ was incredibly busy. Moira couldn't believe the number of students. She saw another girl in shorts and tights. Moira smiled. _I totally called it. _

Moira was eager to get on the train and leave for school. Her father loaded her trunk then turned to his daughter. "Well, I guess this is it. Have a good year at school." He leaned forward to give her an awkward hug and whispered, "Make sure you send me an owl when you get sorted into Slytherin."

Moira just smiled. She wasn't sure she wanted to be in the same house as her father, but knew that it would make him happy if he thought she did.

She turned and walked onto the train. She walked down the aisles, trying to find a compartment. She noticed that there were special compartments in the front of the train for prefects. She looked inside and tried to memorize the faces of the students inside. These were the ones she needed to impress right away, so she would never get in trouble. One prefect in particular caught her eye – he was thin, blond, and sent out an aura of arrogance. Sitting next to him was a pug-faced girl who appeared enamored with the boy. _You're out of your league girl. I could steal him from you in a heartbeat. _

Moira wished she could sit with the boy, but knew she would never be able to swing that so soon. The other compartments seemed to be full, but she finally saw one with only two people, a blond girl and a dark-haired boy.

"Hi. Would you mind if I sat with you?"

The blond girl looked up and nodded. "Did you check your trunk for nargles?"

Moira was confused and looked to the boy, who simply shrugged as if to say he didn't know what they were either.

The term seemed to have a negative connotation, so Moira answered, "My belongings are nargle-free," and sat down next to the boy. He seemed very nervous to be sitting next to someone he didn't know and Moira could tell that he thought she was attractive. _Well, who the hell wouldn't? _she thought.

Knowing introductions would never occur if she wasn't proactive, Moira said, "Hi. I'm Moira. I just transferred to Hogwarts. Who are you?"

"N-Neville Longbottom. I'm a sixth year."

"Luna Lovegood. Fifth year Ravenclaw. Nice to meet you"

_Ravenclaw, huh? She may be weird, but could be very helpful with school work, even if she's a year below me. _

"I'm in Gryffindor," asserted Neville. "Do you have any idea what house you'll be in?"

Before she could answer, another dark-haired boy walked into the compartment. "Hey, Luna, Neville. Alright if I sit here?"

"Sure, Harry." Neville answered.

Harry walked in and sat down next to Luna. He was a few inches taller than Moira, slim yet built, with untidy hair and glasses. Though attractive, Moira could tell her wasn't very well-off as his clothes were far too big for his small frame.

Once Harry was seated, Luna decided introductions were once again in order. "Harry, this is Moira. She just transferred to Hogwarts."

Moira took a moment to study Harry's face. She noticed his sparkling green eyes behind his glasses and wondered why the boy didn't get contacts and show them off. She then saw that he had some sort of scar on his forehead. In the shape of a lightning bolt. Recognition was evident on her face and Harry seemed to squirm a bit.

"Nice to meet you Harry Potter," Moira said nonchalantly. She then turned back to Neville. "Anyway, I'm not sure what house I want to be in. They all seem to have positive qualities." Moira could tell that Harry wasn't the biggest fan of his fame and the quickest way to win him over would be to not make a big deal out of who he was. Moira looked at him out of the corner of his eye and noticed a small smile and sigh of relief. Moira knew she had read him correctly.

_Man, I'm good. Harry Potter already likes me. Harry _fucking _Potter. I just hit the mother load. _

"I wouldn't say all houses have good qualities," Harry interjected.

"What do you mean?"

"Well…" Harry hesitated, suddenly unsure of himself. "Slytherins are generally sneaky and cunning. And they tend to just do whatever they want without thinking about others."

"Really?" Moira was interested. The Chosen One seemed to have a personal vendetta against Slytherin house. "But I thought they were just supposed to be determined and confident."

"That's technically true, but definitely putting a positive spin on things."

"So you guys don't hang out with Slytherins?"

Harry shook his head while Neville answered, "The Slytherins tend to keep to themselves."

"Yes," Luna agreed. "They aren't as friendly and open as they could be."

"Well, that is a disappointment. What house are you in Harry?"

"Gryffindor. And I love it." He paused, seemingly uncomfortable with the slight smugness he just displayed. Wanting to change the subject he asked, "What year are you in Moira?"

"Sixth year. Same as you, right?"

"Yes. And you moved from America right?"

_Wow. Harry seems to be very intere_s_ted in me. And I was barely even trying. Let's go for the fear of alienation angle. I'm sure he'll appreciate that. _

"Oh yeah. The accent. How obvious is it? I hope I'm not just known as 'that American girl' all year."

"It's not too bad." Harry smiled a bit. Moira knew her comment landed just as she had intended. _Now he feels like we have a connection. And it's not like my answer was a lie either. This is almost too easy._

"Why did you move to our fair motherland?" asked Harry, still smiling.

Moira was unable to mask her face when she thought of the answer. "My mom. She…she died. Cancer." Her eyes began to water and Moira hoped she wouldn't cry. Her mother had been the most important person in her life. The only one Moira didn't have to manipulate. And the only subject she would never use for manipulation.

She had lowered her head slightly when she felt her eyes watering. After a moment she looked up at Harry. He was looking at her in a sad, knowing way and Moira realized that Harry knew all too well how it felt to loose a parent. He reached out his hand and set it gently on Moira's knee. She wished that he could do more, but they had only just met and any further touch would be inappropriate. "I'm sorry," he said softly.

Suddenly, the compartment door opened. "Hey, we were able to get out of prefects duty early." Harry jerked his hand from Moira's knee and looked at the source of the voice. Moira looked up too, and realized she had forgotten that she and Harry were not the only ones on the train, let alone in the compartment.

The boy who spoke was tall and redheaded and joined by a girl with frizzy light brown hair. They both had prefect badges attached to their shirts. The girl, being more astute, recognized they were interrupting. "I'm sorry. I don't believe we've met. I'm Hermione Granger." She then pointed to her companion. "This is Ron Weasely. And we're the sixth year Gryffindor prefects." She held out her hand.

_Wow, what a show-off, _Moira thought. However, she couldn't make an enemy out of prefects, especially not ones who were friends with Harry Potter. She took the girl's hand. "Moira Lloyd, sixth year. I just transferred. It's a pleasure to meet you both."

Hermione sat down next to Moira, leaving Ron next to Harry. Moira could tell that Hermione saw her as a threat and wanted to keep Ron as far way from her as possible. Of course, Moira loved knowing someone was jealous of her.

The two prefects soon monopolized the conversation, seemingly too excited to catch up with Harry to include Moira, so she was left alone with her thoughts. After a few minutes, a small boy came in and informed Harry that he was invited to a small gathering of students hosted by Professor Slughorn. After the boy left, Harry explained the invitation.

"Dumbledore said that Professor Slughorn likes to surround himself with talented students that he believes will be useful to him later."

Hermione seemed very bothered that she had not been invited also. Moira delighted in Hermione's reaction. _Oh, she must think she's top shit. I love to see people like her get knocked down a peg. _However, Moira was also disappointed with her lack of invitation, but instead of being upset, took it as a challenge. _I wonder how long it will take for me to convince this Slughorn I'll be useful to him. I say it'll be a month tops. _

Far too soon it was time for Harry to leave. He said a quick good-bye to his friends and smiled again at Moira. "Hopefully we'll see each other around."

"Well, that's very likely, as we're in a few of the same classes." Moira licked her lips and smiled, which caused Harry to blush as he left.

Without Harry's presence, Moira found herself wishing to reach their destination soon, while forced to feign interest in the conversation of the others.

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**AN: ****Next chapter we'll find out which house Moira is sorted into and she'll finally meet the arrogant blond prefect we all know and love.**


	3. The Sorting

**Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or locations of _Harry Potter._ I am making no money from this story. **

**AN: Once again, I do not have my copy of HBP available to reference right now. I am trying to make this as cannon as possible (besides the addition of the Moira character, obviously) so edits may be made once the book is in my possession.**

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After seemingly an eternity, the train finally arrived in Hogmeade, the town Moira knew to be located next to Hogwarts. Ron, Hermione, Luna, and Neville left the compartment together and headed out of the train. Moira followed, suddenly anxious. She was wondering if she was supposed to follow her classmates to the carriages, which were being pulled by these winged horses that looked as if they were starving to death. Every rib bone was visible. Frankly, Moira found them kind of disturbing, but also intriguing.

Before she could further inspect the creatures, Moira heard a gruff voice yelling, "First years! First years this way!"

Moira turned and found the source of the voice- a burly man about ten feet tall. He was also large in girth with a long brown beard that had hints of grey. This was a man who spent a lot of time outside and did not care about outward appearances. However, it was obvious to Moira that this man held some sort of authority and decided to treat him with respect.

"Excuse me Sir, I just transferred here and was wondering…" Moira asked, hoping to convey modesty.

"Oh, yeah," the man replied. "Dumbledore told me about you. Normally don't accept transfers, but he made an exception just fer you."

Moira smiled. As much as she hadn't wanted to change schools, she was pleased to know that she was special enough to warrant an exception.

The man motioned her forward towards a lake filled with row boats. "You'll ride over with the first years, so you can be sorted into yer house."

Moira made her way to the lake and onto a boat with four frightened eleven year-olds. _Merlin, I'm stuck at the preverbal kiddie table. I hope this doesn't take long. _

The first years began discussing the different houses and their defining couldn't help but add onto the first years' explanations, even if she didn't say them out loud. An Asian boy stated that Gryffindors were brave. _And sometimes dive in without thinking things through._

A strawberry blond girl chimed in that "Slytherins are determined." _But sneaky and unfriendly according to Harry. _

A set of dark haired twins finished up the descriptions. The first one said, "Ravenclaws are really clever." _And probably insufferable know-it-alls, or just odd like that girl on the train._

The second twin added, "But Hufflepuffs are loyal." _Yeah, and they let everyone walk all over them._

_Hmmm…_ Moira started wondering about which house she wanted to be in. _Gryffindor bravery sounds pretty good and I wouldn't mind cozying up to Harry Potter. But I'm also very determined to get what I want. Then again, I don't want my social circle limited to only Slytherins. I'm definitely clever enough to get into Ravenclaw, but I prefer being the smart one in the group. Hufflepuff seems the least likely. I am completely loyal to my mom, but not much else. I guess Gryffindor or Slytherin would be the best, _Moira concluded.

While Moira was pondering the potential of the four houses, the Hogwarts castle came into view. It was a massive medieval structure set upon a large hill. Moira could easily imagine getting lost in such a building nearly every day for at least a month. She didn't have the best sense of direction, perhaps the only flaw Moira would admit to having. She would have to befriend someone in all of her classes so she would get to her classes on time to make a good impression on all of her professors.

A few minutes later, the boats reached the school grounds. Moira couldn't wait to get off the boat and into the feast. Not only was she starving, but she was also eager to find out where she belonged in the school, who would automatically become her friends simply because they were in the same house.

The students got out of the boats and gathered outside of the steps leading to the castle. The large man addressed them: "Hello and welcome to Hogwarts. My name is Rubeus Hagrid. Along with my duties as groundskeeper of Hogwarts I also teach Care of Magical Creatures, which you may begin taking during your third year. If you wait here, Deputy Headmistress McGonagall will lead you into the Great Hall shorty to be sorted." With this Rubeus Hagrid went into the castle, leaving the first years and Moira alone outside.

Moira looked at the anxious faces of the children surrounding her. She tried to hide her own feelings by keeping her voice neutral. These were kids but she was almost a legal adult. They could be nervous, but she had to impress everyone with her confidence, even if she had to fake it.

Mere moments after Hagrid's departure, a severe-looking woman dressed in long block robes appeared. Moira noticed two first years arguing next to her. They obviously hadn't noticed the arrival of the Deputy Headmistress. Moira turned to the students and put her figure to her lips, then pointed to Professor McGonagall to get the pair to stop talking. McGonagall noticed Moira's actions and smiled at her. Moira answered with her own smile, deliberately small to connote humility.

_And I just impressed the second most powerful professor in the entire school. _Moira thought, glad it was so easy.

"Follow me please," McGonagall ordered.

The group followed the professor into the school and Moira took in the grandeur of it all. The school was expertly decorated, with a thousand years' worth of moving art, along with a line of suits of armor along the walls. Moira found the castle to be exquisite. The conservatory was nice, but there was such a sense of history here. "I could definitely get used to this," she said aloud.

The group soon arrived at the Great Hall. At the back of the hall was a raised table, where the professors were sitting. On the ground level were four long tables, each with a huge banner hanging about it displaying which house sat at each table. She noticed the Slytherin banner was green and silver, the same colors Moira's bedroom at her father's was decorated in. _Real subtle, Dad, _Moira thought.

Right in front of the professor's table stood a stool with an old black hot on top of it. Moira was curious as to why an old hat was the focal point, but realized it must have something to do with the sorting process to be placed in such an important position.

After reaching the front of the room Professor McGonagall took out a sheet of parchment. "When I call your name, please sit on the stool. The Sorting Hat will be placed on you head. Once you have been sorted, please join your house." She opened the scroll and immediately read, "Lloyd, Moira."

Moira was surprised to hear her name. As a student with a name in the middle of the alphabet, she was not used to being called first. Of course, she was a transfer, not a first year, and it made sense for to be separate from the rest of the students waiting to be sorted. She was also relieved to just get it over with. She made her way up to the stool and sat down. She looked up and saw Harry sitting at the Gryffindor table. She caught his eye and smiled. He smiled softly in return. Even though she was too far away to be sure, Moira could swear that he was blushing.

McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat on Moira's head and it sprang to life. After a moment, it exclaimed, "Slytherin."

Harry's smile quickly left his face.

Moira stood up and returned the hat to Professor McGonagall. She was disappointed by Harry's reaction. She had honestly liked him on the train.

As she was walking to the Slytherin table, Moira saw the blond prefect she had noticed earlier on the train. _Maybe this isn't so bad after all._

Moira was able to finagle a seat across from the boy and up close Moira could tell that he was even more attractive than he had looked from afar. He had light blond hair, milky white skin, and stunning grey eyes. He appeared smug and disinterested in the sorting process. Frankly, Moira didn't much care for the process now that she was already sorted. _Who cares which house these first years will be into anyway? It's not like I am going to hang out with them anyway. _She clapped along with the rest of her house when another joined their ranks, but she was really focused on getting the ceremony over with so she could eat, settle into her new dorm, and convince everyone at this school to love her.

Once everyone had been sorted, an assortment of food appeared on the tables and people were finally able to talk. The pug-faced girl next to the blond was the first to speak to Moira.

"So, what's your story?" she asked in a nasal-tinged voice.

"I transferred here. I used to live in the US with my Mom, but now I live with my Dad. Dumbledore made an exception to let me transfer here." Moira knew that bragging would be the way to get in with the Slytherins. The girl seemed impressed and the blond boy smirked.

"Ooh, I'm Pansy Parkinson. I'm a sixth year prefect," the girl said while drawing attention to the badge on her chest.

Moira smiled. "And who are you?" she asked the delicious-looking blond boy.

"Draco Malfoy. Have you heard of me?"

_Wow, he's even more arrogant than I thought. I can deal with that. _"Well, I've heard of your family. I think our parents may have gone to school together. My father has mentioned a Lucius Malfoy."

"Yes, he's my father," Draco paused and studied Moira's face. "What's your name again?"

"Moira Lloyd. But my father is John Giddings."

Recognition was evident on Draco's face.

"You know my dad?" Moira asked.

"I had the pleasure of meeting him this past summer. He and my father had some business together. I'm surprised he didn't mention that he had a daughter coming to Hogwarts."

"It was quite a recent development," Moira answered, happy that Draco seemed interested in her. The pug-faced Pansy, however, frowned. Moira continued, "It was only settled that I would be transferring here last week. " She hoped that this answer would satisfy him and he would not ask why she transferred so quickly. She had already cried once about her mom today and knew that another session of grief would not elicit the same reaction from a table of Slytherins as it had for Harry on the train.

Luckily, at that moment Headmaster Dumbledore stood up to speak and the room became quiet.

"Welcome all to another year at Hogwarts," the headmaster started. "I would like to take this opportunity to announce some staffing changes for this school year. Professor Horace Slughorn has graciously agreed to come out of retirement and resume his position as Potion's Master this year." Dumbledore paused and began to applause, prompting both applause and confused looks from the students. "This means that Professor Snape will now be teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts."

He again began to applause, but very few people besides the other staff members joined him. Around her Moira could hear whispering, "Snape's teaching Dark Arts?" and "I can't believe Professor Snape switched subjects."

Utterly confused, Moira turned to Pansy to find out what was going on. "Why is it such a big deal that Professor Snape changed subjects?"

Pansy whispered, "He's the head of our house and the Defense Against the Dark Arts job is cursed. No professor has lasted more than a year. They must be trying to get rid of him!"

"He's probably glad. Sick of being Dumbledore's pet," the dark-haired boy on the other side of Pansy interjected. "I'm Blaise Zabini, by the way." The boy smiled and winked at Moira, a pathetic attempt at flirting. She moved her eyes to glance at Draco and noticed that he didn't seem to be too worried about the Snape situation. Moira looked back at Blaise and smiled. _Never in a thousand years, Blaise._

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The rest of the night was filled with inane chatter about classes and dating gossip. Besides finding out about Draco's status, Moira couldn't care less. She was tired from the train ride and just wanted to sleep. She was thankful to only be sharing her room with two others- Pansy and a beast of a girl named Millicent. Moira was not impressed with her dorm mates so far. Pansy seemed rather dim, but at least she would be an in to Draco, so Moira had to play nice. Besides, the girl seemed to know everything about everyone and would be the quickest way to get the layout of the castle.

After faking her way through an hour of gossip with Pansy, Moira excused herself to go to bed. She was happy to get away from the prattle and spend some time alone with her thoughts before getting thrust into a new school year. She fell asleep imagining how Draco's fingers would feel running through her hair and trying not to think of the look on Harry's face when she was sorted into Slytherin.

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**AN: Thanks to those who have reviewed the story and encouraged me to continue. Look for chapter four to be published within the next few weeks.**

**AN: I love writing again! In addition to completing this story I will also be taking requests for songfics. No guarantees I will write fics based on all of your suggestions- I do have to feel inspired. **


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